2014 nissan juke Reviews and News

Four years after the introduction of the Nissan Juke, people walk right up and tell me that they don’t get it. I confess that I roll my eyes like a sullen teenager in response. Why are old people so dense?

Who says that a hot little car has to look like your great aunt’s Pontiac Sunfire? Who says that a utility-type vehicle can’t be fun to drive? Who says that a car can’t be striking (or just plain weird) instead of merely beautiful?

Maybe the 2014 Nissan Juke Nismo RS will help the zombies around me finally get it. An intercooled, turbocharged 215-hp powerplant ought to help. I tell them to think of the Juke Nismo RS as a Sentra SE-R, only one that can carry a surfboard.

Not the Juke R, but it’s trying

Introduced last spring, the Nissan Juke Nismo RS sits atop a little pyramid of Juke models that begins with the plain old Juke, steps up to the Juke Nismo with the blessing of Nissan’s racing-oriented Nismo subsidiary, and then takes the final step as the Juke Nismo RS. It’s not exactly the Juke R, the Juke powered by a twin-turbo, 545-hp Nissan GT-R V-6 that RML built as a stunt machine in 2012 (you can buy a copy for $665,000), but it’s trying.

When you select the front-wheel-drive version of the Nissan Juke Nismo RS, you get a six-speed manual transmission with a short-throw shift linkage, so you can pretend that you’re in a Juke R when you light up the front tires. You don’t even have to be in the sandy part of the beach parking lot to do so, as the bottom three ratios in the gearbox are extra short for quicker acceleration, so this 2884-pound package gets moving pretty quick.

Other racy stuff includes twin-tube KYB dampers, a helical-type limited-slip differential, 12.6-inch brakes in front matched with 11.5-inch vented rotors in the rear, and 225/45R-18 Continental ContiSportContact 5 summer-performance tires. And don’t forget the Recaro racing seats that are set up to accommodate a racing-style seatbelt harness. Plus all the electronic tricks that no one wants to read about but always appreciates on a long drive up the coast.

It carries stuff

We won’t kid you, because we’ll admit that the best thing about the Juke Nismo RS is the fact that it carries stuff, thanks to its utility configuration and roof that’s a handful of inches taller than the usual wagon. You can put humans in the rear seat and expect less whining than you get from passengers in a Mazdaspeed 3, though the legroom is not capacious.

More important, the 60-40 split folding rear seat will let you slide in a bunch of stuff, like the cooler, the wetsuit, and the board (a short one; get a roof rack for the Stewart longboard). Or throw in the wakeboard. Or the skis, when winter comes. See, people who drive a Juke actually do things on the weekend; they don’t just sit on the porch and shuck peas. There’s 10.5 cubic-feet behind the second-row seat and 35.6 cubic-feet once you fold down the rear seat.

Maybe you think there’s no reason to build some speed into a utility-style vehicle, but when the big waves came in from Mexico last weekend (6-foot breakers, with 8-footers in the sets), the parking spots on Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu were full by 5:15 a.m. If you didn’t get there in time, it was a long walk to the beach. (At least that’s what surf guy Frank told us.)

Hauling it

It’s painful to crawl across the narrow bolsters of the Recaro racing seats, but you’re held firmly in place once you get into position. The steering wheel is adjustable for tilt but doesn’t telescope, and you find yourself placing it low, as if it were a bus wheel.

Lay into the gas and the Juke Nismo RS starts moving, only by this we mean it not only moves forward but also pitches and rolls. There’s plenty of driveline reaction to pitch up the nose, and the tall center of gravity also makes you more aware of body roll. There’s not too much of either, but you’ll feel more secure and go faster if you learn to left-foot brake, balancing the Juke in the corners to get the most of it. With a nose-heavy weight distribution of 62 percent front/38 percent rear, it’s the smart thing to do.

We got a taste of this while driving the Juke R a year ago, which began with a little bit of high-speed lawn mowing across the infield grass of Nashville Motor Speedway when we understeered across a medium-speed bend while trying to drive too precisely. As the test driver from RML showed us afterward, you can make the thing dance, but you have to be a little aggressive with the controls.

Actually, this sort of thing is what makes the 2014 Nissan Juke Nismo RS more fun than a Mazdaspeed 3 or a Subaru WRX. It looks unexpected, and it does unexpected things. And when you’re having fun at the wheel, you do best when you drive in unexpected ways.

New for 2014

The 2014 Nissan Juke lineup expands with the introduction of the Nismo and Nismo RS performance models. Two new exterior colors, Red Alert and Bordeaux Black, are new additions.

Vehicle Overview

The Juke is a subcompact crossover slotting under the compact Rogue and Rogue Select in Nissan’s lineup. It is sold in S, SV, SL, Nismo, and Nismo RS grades in front- or all-wheel drive configurations. A six-speed manual is available on front-drive Jukes while a continuously variable transmission (CVT) is optional in S, SV, and SL trims. All-wheel drive models are only available with the CVT.

Summary

The 2014 Nissan Juke is known for its quirky exterior styling and nimble handling particularly in Nismo and Nismo RS guises. It is powered by a 1.6-liter turbocharged I-4 producing 188 hp and 177 lb-ft of torque in S, SV, and SL grades. Nismo Jukes use the same powerplant but make 197 hp and 184 lb-ft while the Nismo RS model is rated at 215 hp and 210 lb-ft with the manual and 211 hp and 184 lb-ft with the CVT. Fuel economy in the 2014 Juke varies based on transmission and drivetrain configurations with front-drive CVT crossovers achieving the best EPA ratings at 27/32 mpg city/highway. Opting for a manual transmission drops those numbers down to 25/31 mpg while all-wheel drive Jukes are rated at 25/30 mpg.

Performance and handling are 2014 Juke strong suits especially the Nismo and Nismo RS grades, which have upgraded suspension, brakes, larger 18-inch wheels with summer-performance tires, and steering to compliment the more powerful engine. All-wheel-drive models have the best handling since they are able to distribute power evenly through its torque vectoring capability, making it ideal as a sporty all-weather crossover with a lot of character.

Interior space is where the 2014 Juke falters because of the lack of useful storage areas and a small cabin, which limits the crossover’s practicality. There is technically room for five people but due to the cramped rear seats and limited cargo space, it isn’t an ideal vehicle for people who carry a lot of gear or as a family car. The center stack, on the other hand, is unique because of the I-CON system, which cleverly integrates climate and drive mode interface into one set of buttons. Tech features such as a navigation system, rearview camera, a Rockford Fosgate audio system, and a USB port are available in SV and higher trims, which help make the Juke’s cabin feel more upscale.

The 2014 Nissan Juke has a four-star safety rating from the NHTSA (out of a possible five stars) and earned a good score in four of five categories in IIHS testing (good is the highest possible score).

What We Think

The 2014 Juke is a quirky crossover that prioritizes standing out and driving engagement over practicality. Nismo and Nismo RS models provide the most fun with their performance-tuned chassis and uprated engines. In a 2011 Editor’s Notebook review, we said that with all-wheel drive, “the Juke rides better, handles much better, and gets a lot more grip with all-wheel drive,” making an excellent all-weather daily driver. We also highlighted in a 2011 Editor’s Notebook review the generous list of available features, making it good value for the performance it offers. However, interior space is lacking for a crossover, which makes the Juke less useful for family duties or carrying passengers. In one review, we said that the Juke has rear seats that are “relatively cramped” and a “cargo area that is far from commodious.”

Joe Montana or Tom Brady? Madonna or Lady Gaga? The first love or the new flame? It’s in our nature to look in the rearview mirror, to measure the brightness of the present against the best of the past. It’s no different with car enthusiasts. For all the areas in which automobiles have improved—safety, performance, efficiency, reliability—they still live in the shadow of the past. The great thing about cars, though, is that we don’t have to rely solely on our memories. We’ll never know how twenty-eight-year-old Michael Jordan would have fared against twenty-eight-year-old LeBron James, but we can find well-kept classic cars—the icons that enthusiasts worship—and pit them against their modern equivalents. That’s just what we did with these seven matchups. It’s throttle cables versus direct injection. AM radios versus infotainment screens. Old-car patina versus new-car smell. So, was it really better then? Come back next Thursday for the next entry in this series.

The funky Nissan Juke gains its most performance-oriented variant yet in the 2014 Nissan Juke Nismo RS, which slots above the Nissan Juke Nismo thanks to its upgraded engine and chassis that were tuned by Nissan’s performance division. Nissan has announced pricing for this range-topping Juke model, and it starts at $26,930 with destination for the front-wheel-drive, manual transmission Juke Nismo RS.

With winter still exerting its chilly wrath across much of the country, many car shoppers want one key feature in a new car: all-wheel drive (AWD). With power delivered to all four wheels, there’s a better chance of getting traction in ice, snow, and slush. While we'd advise that fitting any car with winter tires can improve your cold-weather driving experience, an all-wheel-drive car does improve the chances of avoiding a costly bill from a friendly tow-truck. Fortunately, buying a car with all-wheel drive doesn't have to break the budget, as we’ve proven here with a list of the ten most affordable cars with AWD. We’ve focused on user-friendly cars and crossovers with full-time AWD, so you won’t find any trucks with off-road-style, part-time four-wheel-drive systems.

Aside from two new colors, a few new equipment packages, and minor pricing changes on two models, the 2014 Nissan Juke carries over largely unchanged from last year, with the uniquely-styled compact crossover continuing to sell well in the U.S. and Europe. The only models getting a price change are the Juke SV, which gets a $50 increase in both FWD and AWD trims to $22,850 and $24,550, respectively.

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Warranty

Recalls

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2012-2014 Nissan Juke, 2012-2013 Infiniti M56, QX56, and 2014-2015 Infiniti Q70 (V8 engine vehicles only), and QX80 vehicles. The fuel pressure sensors may not have been sufficiently tightened during production. As a result, the fuel pressure sensor may loosen with vehicle usage and cause a fuel leak.

Consequences

A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source could cause a vehicle fire.

Remedy

Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will re-torque the fuel pressure sensors free of charge. The recall began on January 25, 2015. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.

Potential Units Affected

133,592

Notes

Nissan North America, Inc.

Recall Date

12-31-1969:21:35:50

Component

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION:SWITCH

Summary

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2014 Versa Sedan vehicles manufactured July 16, 2013, to January 29, 2014, 2013-2014 Cube vehicles manufactured July 3, 2013, to October 21, 2013, and 2013-2014 Juke vehicles manufactured July 3, 2013, to October 22, 2013. When exposed to hot temperatures, the affected vehicles have an engine start/stop button that may stick inside the button housing.

Consequences

If the engine start/stop button gets stuck in the housing, road vibrations may cause the engine to shut off unexpectedly while the vehicle is being driven, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will modify the start/stop switch housing, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin by late-August 2015. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.